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Zonker's Insights


Mounting remote directories using FUSE and sshfs on openSUSEToday

Getting ready to head to Nuremberg this morning, and wanted to copy some files over to my USB key so I could work on the plane. (Florida to Germany is a bit of a commute, so I might as well have something to do while I’m in a tin can over the Atlantic Ocean, right?)

I’ve got an account with rsync.net (highly recommend) and wanted to copy some files to a fresh system with openSUSE 11.1 RC 1 to transfer to USB. (11.1 looks very good, by the way…)

I didn’t have my rsync scripts handy, so I decided to see about mounting the remote system using FUSE. You can also connect using Webdav in Nautilus and the “fish” protocol in Konqueror, but this method is good if you’re not a desktop user. (For instance, if you have a server running openSUSE and want to mount a filesystem on another server while working over an SSH connection.)

You should have FUSE installed already, but I didn’t have sshfs, so I popped open a terminal and ran this command:

zypper in sshfs

I’d created a directory called “rsync” (not very original, I know) and mounted the remote filesystem using the SSH Filesystem:

sshfs user@host.rsync.net: rsync/

Once that’s done, the remote filesystem is mounted as the directory “rsync” and I can copy and move files just like they’re local. (With, of course, the exception of the fact that they’re being transferred over an Internet connection rather than on local

Have some fresh openSUSE for Thanksgiving!November 27

OK, I know a lot of openSUSE users are outside the U.S., but I couldn’t help the Thanksgiving reference. No matter where you are, I hope you’re having a great day — and 11.1 RC 1 ought to spice it up a bit. :-) I just pushed the button on the openSUSE 11.1 RC 1 announcement on openSUSE News so tell your friends, family, neighbors, and everybody else who might want to help test the release.

Interview with openSUSE Board member Bryen YunashkoNovember 26

If you have a few minutes, check out the interview with openSUSE Board member Bryen Yunashko here. Bryen talks about A11y, his work with Linux, and career choices for deaf and hard of hearing students.

Bryen was recently elected to the openSUSE Community Board and is probably the first ever Deaf-Blind member of a Linux-based board. “I started using Linux some years ago after I got frustrated with some of the restrictions and limitations I faced on Windows. I also ran for board because I wanted to ensure that accessibility users also have a strong voice in the open source world.”

Bryen is actively involved in working with developers and packagers in making sure that all Linux-based software is accessible for people with disabilities. “I’m an active member and leader of the GNOME A11y Team,” Bryen said. “GNOME is a desktop environment in Linux and ‘A11y’ (A plus 11 letters plus y spells accessibility) stands for accessibility in computing. By getting into A11y, I’m taking charge of my own destiny. I want to be able to be sure I can continue to work with computers as long as I live.”

Good stuff — head over and see what Bryen has to say.

openSUSE Sports a New License (Ding dong, the EULA’s dead…)November 26

Just in time for openSUSE 11.1 RC 1, we’ve finished the new and improved license for openSUSE 11.1. The days of agreeing to a click-through EULA for openSUSE are over!

The text of the new license is included on the wiki, but the highlights are:

  • Users no longer need to agree to the click-through EULA. This is not a EULA, it’s a license notice. We want you to be aware of your rights as provided by the FOSS licenses, so we’ll display this notice but not require a click-through EULA.
  • openSUSE is an aggregate work including many open source and free software packages. The aggregate work is licensed under the GNU General Public License version 2, individual packages are governed by their respective licenses.
  • The main DVD now includes only the software that we can redistribute freely and that you can redistribute freely.

We want to make sure that openSUSE is the easiest Linux to obtain and use — and a big chunk of that is licensing. We now have a license that presents no obstacle to redistribution, and no obstacle for modification.

We are also working on trademark guidelines that clarify how and when the openSUSE marks can be used, and we’ll be releasing those shortly.

The work we’ve done on the openSUSE Build Service and the openSUSE license is all about making it easy to redistribute openSUSE: Either as-is, or modified to suit your needs. Want to ship a

Lars talks about telecommutingNovember 21

Nice interview with our own Lars Marowsky-Brée about telecommuting over on the Linux Lancers blog. I was really interested in reading about Lars experience working from home, since I’ve also worked outside the office for a number of employers since 2000. I totally agree with his comments about self-discipline:

Discipline is needed, I think; but not just in the way most reluctant managers think of: it is actually quite difficult to stop working, or make a clear cut between work and personal spaces. The “just one more mail”-syndrome. And accommodating conference calls in the middle of the night is another downside of the deal.

Finding the balance can be hard, and there are those days where one can’t get into work or can’t seem to stop. I think it evens out in the end, with a tendency towards working more than intended.

Good stuff - take a few minutes to check it out if you have time.